Locking device and locking system

This application claims priority to Chinese Application No. 2022110007957, filed on Aug. 19, 2022, entitled “Locking Device and Locking System,” which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

The present application relates to a locking device and a locking system comprising the locking device.

A locking device is common in the field of mechanical devices, and is operable for combining or separating multiple objects.

One application of the locking device is the charging door or fuel tank cap of a car. In such an application, the locking device is basically installed on the inside of the charging door or fuel tank cap to provide a clean appearance of the car. Users can unlock the charging door or fuel tank cap by pressing the locking device, and lock the charging door or fuel tank cap by pressing the locking device again, thus providing convenient operation.

In applications such as charging door or fuel tank cap, a locking device is provided in the vehicle, and an unlocking device in conjunction with the locking device is arranged on the inner side of the charging door or fuel tank cap. Therefore, it is expected that when the locking device is in the locking position, the unlocking device will be held in a state of engagement with the locking device. When the locking device is in the unlocking position, the unlocking device will detach from the locking device and can be ejected.

In other applications, the locking device is required to provide additional safety performance to avoid accidental initiate of the locking device. For example, unexpected initiate of the locking device is undesired during the travelling of the car or when the owner is away from the car.

Specifically, it is desired to integrating additional electric locking mechanisms into the locking device to minimize space occupation and provide modular advantages.

Therefore, it is necessary to propose a new locking device that can reliably achieve the above functions in a simplified structure as much as possible.

The present application discloses a locking device comprising: a housing; a plunger inserted into the housing, movable in a longitudinal direction relative to the housing and rotatable around the longitudinal direction to transit between a locking position and an unlocking position, wherein when the plunger is in the unlocking position, the plunger is in a first rotating position and a first axial position, when the plunger is in the locking position, the plunger is in a second rotational position different from the first rotational position and a second axial position different from the first axial position; a rotor accommodated in the housing and rotatable around a rotor rotation axis relative to the plunger between a engaged position and a disengaged position, wherein when the plunger is in the locking position, the rotor is rotatable to the engaged position to prevent the plunger from moving; and a motor accommodated in the housing and configured to drive the rotor to rotate.

In an embodiment, the housing includes an open end and a closed end that are opposite in the longitudinal direction; the plunger comprises: a first end facing the open end; a second end opposite to the first end, the plunger being installed into the housing from the open end of the housing towards the closed end through the second end; a guide groove arranged on an outer peripheral surface of the plunger and extends along the longitudinal direction towards a middle of the plunger near the first end; wherein the locking device further includes a guide located near the open end of the housing, and the guide extends from an inner surface of the housing to abut the guide groove and move relative to the guide groove, causing the plunger to be forced to rotate to the first rotational position when the plunger moves to the first axial position, and be forced to rotate to the second rotational position when the plunger moves to the second axial position.

In an embodiment, the guide groove includes a guide groove linear segment and a guide groove spiral segment connected to each other longitudinally, the guide groove linear segment extends longitudinally in a straight line from a position close to the first end, and the guide groove spiral segment extends at an angle from the end of the guide groove linear segment, spirally away from the first end along the outer circumference of the plunger.

In an embodiment, a cross section of the guide perpendicular to the longitudinal direction matches a cross section area of the guide groove perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, and includes a first guide edge and a second guide edge, both of which are roughly perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and form an angle with each other, and are respectively against two inner sides of the guide groove spiral segment of the guide groove, to force the plunger to rotate when the plunger moves.

In an embodiment, the rotor rotation axis of the rotor is parallel to a plunger spin axis of the plunger; the guide groove further includes a guide groove engage segment, which extends basically circumferentially along a spiral direction of the guide groove spiral segment from the end of the guide groove spiral segment; the guide groove engage segment is set so that when the plunger is in the locking position and the rotor is in the engaged position, a rotor edge of the rotor is engaged with the guide groove engage segment to prevent a longitudinal movement of the plunger; and the guide groove is set to avoid mutual interaction between the plunger and the rotor when the rotor is in the disengaged position.

In an embodiment, the rotor edge of the rotor includes an actuated part with internal teeth, and a driving gear of the motor is engaged with the internal teeth to drive the rotor to rotate between the engaged position and the disengaged position; wherein the actuated part includes a engagement section and a driving section, and an extension length of the engagement section along the longitudinal direction matches a groove width of the guide groove engage segment along the longitudinal direction, so that the engagement section can rotate into the guide groove engage segment, and the driving section is connected to the engagement section, and a step is formed at the junction of the driving section and the engagement section, the step prevents the driving section from further rotating into the guide groove engage segment.

In an embodiment, the locking device further includes a housing cover installed on the open end of the housing, and a buffer is installed on an inner side of the housing cover facing the open end; the rotor is provided with two engagement portions located substantially in the same longitudinal position as the buffer, and the buffer is located between the two engagement portions, thereby controlling the rotor to swing around the rotor rotation axis.

In an embodiment, the plunger includes a trajectory groove arranged on the outer peripheral surface of the plunger, extended longitudinally towards the middle of the plunger from vicinity of the second end, staggered with the guide groove in a circumferential direction for a cooperate effect; the trajectory groove includes a trajectory groove linear segment and a trajectory groove spiral segment connected to each other in a longitudinal direction, the trajectory groove linear segment extends in a straight line in a longitudinal direction from a position close to the second end, and the trajectory groove spiral segment starts from an end of the trajectory groove linear segment, and extends an angle spirally along the outer circumference of the plunger away from the second end, and a spiral direction of the trajectory groove spiral segment is the same as the spiral direction of the guide groove spiral segment.

In an embodiment, the plunger further includes an irregular groove formed at an end of the trajectory groove spiral segment of the trajectory groove away from the second end, and defining a closed loop groove on the outer peripheral surface of the plunger; the locking device further includes an elastic needle, a fixed end of the elastic needle is fixed to the housing, a free end of the elastic needle is inserted into the trajectory groove or the irregular groove and movable along the trajectory groove and the irregular groove to limit the plunger in the locking position.

In an embodiment, the shape of the irregular groove is designed so that the free end of the elastic needle travels in a one-way cycle in the irregular groove, and does not travel in an opposite direction.

In an embodiment, a tip of the irregular groove faces the second end, and a concave portion of the irregular groove is opposite to the tip and away from the second end; when the plunger is in the unlocking position, the free end of the elastic needle is located in the trajectory groove, when the plunger is in the locking position, the free end of the elastic needle is located in the concave portion.

In an embodiment, the locking device further comprising: a compression spring, one end of which fixed to the housing, and the other end of the compression spring presses against the plunger to bias the plunger towards the first axial position.

In an embodiment, the first axial position is the position where the first end of the plunger is away from the closed end of the housing, and the second axial position is the position where the first end of the plunger is near to the closed end of the housing.

In an embodiment, the locking device further comprising: a seal in the shape of a corrugated tube, the seal is sleeved on the plunger, one end of the seal is fixed with the first end of the plunger, and another end of the seal is fixed to an flange formed jointly by a upper flange portion of the housing and a lower flange portion of the housing cover; the seal has a corrugated portion that can be extended or folded, and is extended or folded as the plunger moves between the locking position and the unlocking position.

In an embodiment, the plunger is accommodated in a first accommodating chamber of the housing, the motor and the rotor are accommodated in a second accommodating chamber of the housing, and the first accommodating chamber and the second accommodating chamber are extended along the longitudinal direction respectively and arranged in parallel in a lateral direction which is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction.

The present application further discloses a locking system, comprising: the locking device according to any one of claims-; and a bolt having a bolt head, and the bolt head is longitudinally insertable or detachable from the first end of the plunger when the plunger is in the unlocking position, and locked to the first end when the plunger moves from the unlocking position to the locking position.

In an embodiment, the bolt head is in an approximately H-shaped configuration, and the first end of the plunger has a matching H-shaped inlet for bolt head to insert, and a cylindrical space for the bolt head to rotate freely is formed on the inner side of the H-shaped inlet away from the first end, so that the bolt head, after being inserted into the H-shaped inlet, through rotating at an angle along with the plunger, can be stopped by the H-shaped inlet and locked to the first end.

Locking Device

Bolt

Although reference is made herein to specific embodiments to illustrate and describe the present invention, it should not be limited to the details shown. Specifically, within the scope of the equivalent solution of the claims and without departing from the present invention, various modifications can be made to these details.

The descriptions of “front”, “back”, “up”, “down” and other directions mentioned herein are only for the convenience of understanding. The present invention is not limited to these directions, but can be adjusted according to actual situations.

Firstly, refer tofor an overall description of the locking devicein accordance with the present application. As shown in the figures, the locking deviceincludes a housing, a plunger, a seal, a motor, a motor base, a rotor, a housing cover, a guide, a compression spring, an elastic needle, a buffer, and an electrical connection.

The plungeris inserted into the housing, and is movable longitudinally and rotatable around a longitudinal axis relative to the housingto move between the locking position (see) and the unlocking position (see). When the plungeris in the unlocking position, the plungeris in a first rotational position and a first axial position. When the plungeris in the locking position, the plungeris in a second rotational position different from the first rotational position and a second axial position different from the first axial position (as will be detailed later). That is to say, the plungersimultaneously moves longitudinally and rotates around a longitudinal axis in the housingto switch between the locked and unlocking positions.

The rotoris accommodated in the housingand is located on one side of the plunger. The rotorcan rotate between the engaged position (see) and the disengaged position (see) relative to the plunger. When the plungeris in the locking position, the rotorcan rotate to the engaged position to prevent the movement of the plunger.

The motoris accommodated in the housingand can drive the rotorto rotate. The guideserves to limit the axial movement and rotation of the plunger. The compression springbiases the plungertowards the first axial position. The elastic needleserves to hold the plungerin the locking position.

Now refer toto describe the detail structure of the housing. As shown in the figures, the housingincludes a first accommodating chamber(plunger accommodating chamber), a second accommodating chamber(motor accommodating chamber), an electrical connection portion, an accommodating portion, an upper flange portion, an open end, and a closed end.

The open endis longitudinally opposite to the closed end, and the closed endcan be closed. The electrical connection portionextends longitudinally outward from the closed end. The electrical connection portionis equipped with a longitudinal accommodating portion, so that the electrical connectorin the housingforms an electrical connection with the vehicle through the accommodating portion. For example, the electrical connectorcan be injection molded into the accommodating portion. The housinghas the first accommodating chamberand the second accommodating chamber, both of which extend longitudinally throughout the entire length of the housingand are parallel in a lateral direction which is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction. In the embodiment shown in the figures, the first accommodating chamberis located above the second accommodating chamber.

An upper flange portionis provided at one end of the open endof the first accommodating chamber. The upper flange portionextends axially beyond the first and second accommodating chambersand, and has an annular shape around the longitudinal direction. The annular diameter is larger than that of the first accommodating chamber, and the upper flange portionis provided with an openingin the direction towards the second accommodating chamber. An installation grooveis provided on the annular wall of the upper flange portionto fix the guideto the housing.

Now refer toto describe the specific structure of the plunger. As shown in the figures, the plungerincludes a first end, a second end, and is provided with a trajectory groove, an irregular groove, a guide groove, and an insertion groove.

In the assembled state, the first endof the plungerfaces towards the open endof the housing, and the second endof the plungerfaces towards the closed endof the housing. The plungeris installed into the housingthrough the second endfrom the open endof the housingtowards the closed end, and the second endis located opposite the first endand away from the closed end.

The guide grooveis designed to interact with the guideto limit the axial movement and rotation of the plunger. Specifically, some sections of the guide groove(such as the guide groove linear segmentand the guide groove spiral segment) interact with the guide, while another section of the guide groove(such as the guide groove engage segment) interacts with the rotor. The guideis fixed inside the housingand inserted into the guide groove. As a result when the plungermoves axially, the guideforces the plungerto rotate. For example, when the plungermoves from the first axial position to the second axial position, the guideforces the plungerto rotate from the first rotational position to the second rotational position. On the contrary, when the plungermoves from the second axial position to the first axial position, the guideforces the plungerto rotate back from the second rotational position to the first rotational position. In this way, only the plungerneeds to be driven axially, and the plungerwill automatically rotate under the action of the guide.

Particularly, the guide grooveis arranged on the outer peripheral surface of the plungerand extends longitudinally towards the middle of the plungerfrom near the first end. More specifically, the guide grooveincludes a guide groove linear segmentand a guide groove spiral segmentthat are connected to each other longitudinally. The guide groove linear segmentextends longitudinally in a straight line from a position near the first end, and the guide groove spiral segmentextends at an angle, such as 90 degrees, from the end of the guide groove linear segment, spirally away from the first endalong the outer circumference of the plunger.

The guide groovefurther fits with the rotorto engage with the plungerin the locking position (the second axial position and the second rotational position). For this purpose, the guide groovefurther includes a guide groove engagement section, which extends basically circumferentially along the spiral direction of the guide groove spiral sectionfrom the end of the guide groove spiral section. The rotorcan be driven and engaged into the guide groove engagement section, thereby preventing the movement of the plunger. More specifically, the rotorcan be set to prevent the movement and/or rotation of the plunger, and any setting method can achieve the purpose of the present application.

The trajectory grooveis arranged on the outer peripheral surface of the plunger, extending longitudinally towards the middle of the plungerfrom near the second end, and is staggered and synergistically arranged with the guide groovein the circumferential direction. The trajectory grooveserves to accommodate the free endof the elastic needle, so that the plungerdoes not interfere with the elastic needleduring rotation. The trajectory grooveincludes a trajectory groove linear segmentand a trajectory groove spiral segmentthat are connected to each other in the longitudinal direction. The trajectory groove linear segmentextends in a straight line in the longitudinal direction from a position close to the second end. The trajectory groove spiral segmentextends at an angle, from the end of the trajectory groove linear segment, spirally away from the second endalong the outer circumference of the plunger. The spiral direction of the trajectory groove spiral segmentis the same as that of the guide groove spiral segment

The irregular grooveis formed at the end of the trajectory groove spiral segmentof the trajectory grooveaway from the second end, and defines a special shaped closed loop groove on the outer peripheral surface of the plunger. The locking devicefurther includes an elastic needle, one end (fixed end) of the elastic needleis fixed to the housing, and the other end (free end) of the elastic needleis inserted into the irregular grooveand can move along the trajectory grooveand the irregular grooveto limit the plungerin the locking position.

It should be understood that the elastic needlebasically does not rotate or move longitudinally with the plunger, so that only when the plungerrotates to the second rotation position, the irregular groovewill rotate to the direction facing the elastic needle, causing the elastic needleto slide from the trajectory grooveinto the irregular groove.

The shape of the irregular grooveis designed so that the free endof the elastic needlecan only move in a one-way cyclic in the irregular groove, but cannot move in the opposite direction. The tip of the irregular groovetowards the second end, while the concave portion of the irregular grooveis opposite to the tip and away from the second end. When the plungeris in the unlocking position, the free endof the elastic needleis located in the trajectory groove. When the plungeris in the locking position, the free endof the elastic needleis located in the concave portion.

schematically shows the motion trajectory of the free endof the elastic needlein the irregular groove. When the plungermoves towards the locking position, the free endmoves along the locking trajectory, that is, the free endslides from the trajectory groovethrough the tip along the outer contour of the irregular groovetowards the lower part inrelative to the irregular groove, and rests in the concave portion when the plungerrebounds towards the first axial position (i.e., the upper part in), thereby holds the plungerin the locking position. When the plungermoves towards the unlocking position again, the free endmoves along the unlocking trajectory, that is, the free endmoves along the outer contour of the irregular grooveto leave the concave portion, and returns to the trajectory groovethrough the tip when the plungerrebounds towards the first axial position, allowing the plungerto return to the unlocking position. In the present application, the shape of the irregular grooveis roughly heart-shaped, but in other embodiments, the irregular groovecan also take on different shapes, as long as it can guide the one-way cyclic movement of the free endand can engage the free endin the locking position.

The bottom surface of the irregular groovecan be equipped with several step or ratchet portion to prevent the free endfrom retrograde along the opposite direction of the locking trajectoryand unlocking trajectory. The step or ratchet portion, for example, forms a height difference along the radial direction of the plungerin the irregular groove, so that the free endmoves in one-way cyclic along the locking trajectoryand unlocking trajectoryshown inand cannot move in the opposite direction.

It should be understood that the fit between the irregular grooveand the elastic needlehas the function of keeping the plungerin the locking position. However, in applications such as automobiles, external impacts or vibrations may cause the free endof the elastic needleto accidentally leave the concave portion. As a result, the plungeris no longer held in the locking position and the locking deviceunexpectedly unlocks. On the other hand, during the parking period of a car, it is also expected to keep the charging door or fuel tank door locked, that is, to lock the safety lock of the plunger.

The function of the rotoris to prevent accidental unlocking of the locking device. When the plungermoves to the locking position, the rotorengage in the guide groove engage segment. In this way, even if subjected to external impacts or vibrations, the plungerwill not easily leave the locking position.

Now refer toto describe the specific structure of the housing cover. The housing coveris roughly plate-shaped and includes a buffer insertion portion, a rotorinstallation portion, and a lower flange portion. Referring to, it can be seen that the housing coveris engaged at the open endof the housing, forming a closed accommodation space with the housing.